Darling in the Franxx
| creator = Code:000 }} | producer = | writer = | music = Asami Tachibana | studio = }}|Studio Trigger}} | licensee = | network = Tokyo MX, GYT, GTV, BS11, ABC, Mētele, HOME, BSS, BBC, AT-X | network_en = | first = January 13, 2018 | last = July 7, 2018 | episodes = 24 | episode_list = List of Darling in the Franxx episodes }} , abbreviated as , is a 2018 Japanese animated science fiction romance television series produced by CloverWorks and animated by CloverWorks and Trigger that premiered on January 13, 2018. The series was announced at Trigger's Anime Expo 2017 panel in July 2017. A manga adaptation by Kentaro Yabuki and another four-panel comic strip manga began serialization on January 14, 2018. The anime began international distribution simultaneously upon its domestic release. The streaming service Crunchyroll internationally simulcast the series, with Aniplus Asia simulcasting the series to Southeast Asia. Service partner Funimation began the dubbed release of the series on February 1, 2018. Synopsis Setting ''Darling in the Franxx takes place in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic future where the remnants of human civilization have abandoned the surface. Adults and children exist in contrasting environments from each other. Adults live in technologically-advanced cities within Plantations and are immortal, but procreation and relationships among them have become obsolete and undesirable. Artificially-created children, termed "parasites", are deprived of individuality and are educated only for piloting Franxx in pairs to defend humanity. Parasites are kept in isolation from adult society in environments nicknamed "birdcages", which emulate that of a bygone era, so that they can develop the emotional responses required to pilot a Franxx. In the early 21st century, the progress of human civilization was accelerated by ground-breaking discoveries in mining technology, allowing extraction of magma energy for a new low-cost, all-encompassing energy source. Scientists contributing to the breakthrough formed "APE", an organization that would gain a large influence on world politics and the global economy as a result of their discoveries. After discovering human immortality, much of mankind opted to become immortal despite the side effect of losing their reproductive functions. Led by APE after the sudden emergence of the Klaxosaurs, the remnants of human civilization relocated to Plantations and the Franxx units were later created to combat the Klaxosaur threat. Plot In a post-apocalyptic future, humanity is under constant threat from giant creatures known as , which are sub-divided into at least four categories based on their size: "Conrad", }} "Mohorovičić", "Gutenberg" and "(Super) Lehmann". Pushed to the brink of annihilation, the remnants of humanity are led by the mysterious organization known as APE to abandon Earth's now desolate surface for the relative safety of mobile fortress-cities known as Plantations. To defend the Plantations, children called parasites are raised to pilot giant mecha known as |フランキス|Furankisu}} in boy-girl pairs. The male pilot is called the stamen and the female pilot is called the pistil. These children are artificially-created and have short lifespans. A team of ten parasites is assigned to the experimental Squad 13 of Plantation 13. One of them, Hiro, is a former pilot-candidate prodigy who can no longer synchronize with his partner and they both fail to complete the training program. While skipping his class's graduation ceremony, Hiro encounters Zero Two, an elite Franxx pilot with klaxosaur blood, red horns, and an infamous reputation as the "Partner Killer". The rumor is that Zero Two's partners will die after the third time. Despite this, after Zero Two's partner is soon-after killed during a klaxosaur attack during the graduation ceremony, Hiro volunteers to become her new partner, or "darling". Media Anime The 24-episode anime series is directed by Atsushi Nishigori, with Nishigori and Naotaka Hayashi handling series composition, Masayoshi Tanaka designing the characters, Shigeto Koyama acting as mechanical designer, Hiroyuki Imaishi serving as action animation director and Asami Tachibana composing the music. The opening theme song, titled "Kiss of Death", is sung by Mika Nakashima and produced by Hyde, while the ending themes titled (ep 1-6), (ep 7), "Beautiful World" (ep 8-12, 14), (ep 13), "Escape" (ep 16-20), and "Darling" (ep 21-23) are performed by XX:me (read as "Kiss Me"), a unit consisting of the series' main female casts—Zero Two, Ichigo, Miku, Kokoro, and Ikuno. Crunchyroll is simulcasting the series, while Funimation has licensed the series and is streaming it with an English dub. Aniplus Asia is simulcasting the series in South East Asia. Manga A manga adaptation by Kentaro Yabuki and another four-panel comic strip spinoff manga by Mato started their serialization on the Shōnen Jump+ website on January 14, 2018. | ISBN = 978-4-08-881454-4 }} | ISBN = 978-4-08-881493-3 }} | ISBN = 978-4-08-881620-3 }} | ISBN = 978-4-08-881752-1 }} | ISBN = 978-4-08-881854-2 }} Mato's four-panel spinoff manga ended on July 11, 2018, and was compiled into a full-color physical book released on October 4, 2018. | ISBN = 978-4-08-881621-0 }} Soundtrack (volume 1) (volume 2) (volume 3) (digital) | Recorded = | Venue = | Studio = | Genre = Soundtrack | Length = 51:38 (volume 1) 48:34 (volume 2) 1:06:40 (volume 3) 2:46:52 (total) | Label = Aniplex | Producer = | Prev_title = | Prev_year = | Next_title = | Next_year = }} The series' soundtrack is composed by Asami Tachibana and published by Aniplex. The first disc containing 21 tracks is enclosed with the first home video release volume of the anime which was released on April 25, 2018. The second disc also containing 21 tracks is enclosed with the fourth home video release volume which was released on July 25, 2018. The third disc containing 22 tracks is enclosed with the fifth home video release volume which was released on August 29, 2018. All three soundtrack volumes were released digitally on various online music stores on March 27, 2019. Reception Critical response Darling in the Franxx received positive reviews, most notably for its coming-of-age elements. Cactus Matt of Anime Q and A found the series enjoyable, as he commented “I think that's a beautiful way to end this series, with the same message of hope for the future that was always an undercurrent (and later—the entire plot) of the series.” Cal Win of Shinyuusite liked the series’ interpersonal drama and character development despite lack of feedback in the second half of the series. Nate Zen of OtakuKart praises the quality of the animation and character development but commented the series lacked creativity. Crunchyroll gave the series a 4.3 out of 5 stars score for its elements of action, sci-fi, comedy, drama, coming of age, and romance. Some of the series' themes were received with controversy regarding sexual innuendos of teenagers, the lack of plot development regarding the alien species VIRM, and the rushed pacing of the storyline following episode 15. While the series was received positively by viewers in Japan, the Western reception has been mixed. Eric Van Allen of Kotaku described the series as having "moments of brilliance that will stick with me as much as its hasty, rough conclusion", and was "truly fascinating to follow", despite the ending. Skyler Allen of A Piece of Anime appreciated the first half of the series as an "excellent, if flawed, coming of age mecha story with a lot of heart behind it", but described the concluding portion as a "thematically incoherent mess". Kyle Rogacion of Goomba Stomp called the series "an endearing character-driven coming-of-age story", but criticized it for having by the end "eschewed everything that made it great and settled for the easy way out”. However, Random Curiosity voiced a more positive opinion to its ending, stating the series will be "well-remembered for seasons to come" and "kept us all fixated and eagerly anticipating every episode set to air". Meanwhile, the manga has sold 400,000 copies in Japan as of May 2, 2018. Awards and nominations At Newtype Anime Awards 2018, Shigeto Koyama was awarded Best Mechanical Design, with Zero Two and the series itself being runners-up for Best Female Character and Best TV Anime respectively. See also * Gurren Lagann * Mecha anime and manga * Neon Genesis Evangelion Notes References External links * * * Crunchyroll's [https://www.crunchyroll.com/darling-in-the-franxx Darling in the Franxx webpage] * MyAnimeList's [https://myanimelist.net/anime/35849/Darling_in_the_FranXX Darling in the FranXX webpage] Category:2018 anime television series Category:2018 manga Category:Anime with original screenplays Category:Aniplex Category:CloverWorks Category:Crunchyroll Category:Crunchyroll Anime Awards winners Category:Darling in the Franxx Category:Funimation Category:Mecha anime and manga Category:Romance anime and manga Category:Science fiction anime and manga Category:Shōnen manga Category:Shueisha manga Category:Super robot anime and manga Category:Trigger (company) Category:A-1 Pictures